Anybody coming from an indoctrinated religious background have these features in his or her life. I have in my resume bending on my knees more than 17 times a day into a specific direction and whispering words that I didn't even know what they meant! When I paid attention to see what those word mean I found them the most unfounded words in whole universe. Yes I am an Ex-Muslim. What I said are the harmful parts of that belief to other human beings. I was lucky to figure out its falsehood before harming any other human beings. And believe me on that brainwashed stage of my life I would do anything the clergy would have convinced me of!! In short Bravo for the freedom from any organized religion. Long live the freedom of thought :)

Sort of. I can recall the emotions and the physical sensations, but I now recognise them for what they were.

The extreme euphoria, crying, laughing, dancing, all that... simply a relaxed inhibition brought on by the pack activity coupled with no small amount of hyperventilation. Speaking in tongues? Same thing. Nowadays I relate it to the videos you see of teenage girls at Elvis and The Beatles concerts. They're just so damn excited to be there they end up a complete mess, passing out on the floor.

When you get 300 teenagers dancing and shouting at the same time, about the same thing, it's an incredibly powerful experience. So sad it all had to be for a lie.

Your self analysis is thoroughly encouraging, no matter how bitter it's sweetness. It takes real strength to remove the self from the equation and understand the true variables present at the moments that define our beliefs whether they be entirely accurate, or sincerely convoluted. Thanks for sharing yours.